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Last year, NZEI Te Riu Roa kindergarten members won a new addition in their collective agreement: ten-week-long paid sabbaticals for up to 20 head teachers each year. We are honoured to share excerpts from a generous and insightful diary written during one of the first sabbaticals earlier this year, thanks to Shelley Shennan, the head teacher of Parihaka Kindergarten in Whangārei.
While many schools and centres were damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle, a few were forced into long-term closure with staff and children having to re-establish elsewhere. Ako talked to kaiako from three different institutions that found new premises, or were taken in by a neighbouring school or centre.
Initial teacher education plays a crucial role in our education system. But is it up to scratch? Ako talks to education professionals who are reimagining how we grow new teachers.
COVID-19 forced schools and early childhood centres to rethink the way they delivered learning. Ako talks to educators who have found the silver linings and are looking to the future.
Reviews of thirteen excellent new books for kaiako and ākonga.
Many schools and ECE centres already use Aotearoa histories as a powerful tool to engage tamariki in learning. Personal stories of migration are at the heart of it.
How early childhood centres are weaving past into present to grow tamariki to be confident in their identity and belonging.
Professor Linda Mitchell and her colleagues surveyed 156 managers from Early Childhood Education (ECE) providers on the initial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dr Carmen Dalli reflects on the positives for the early childhood sector as we head toward the end of Level 2.
Parents experienced a mix of emotions when their children returned to schools and centres at the end of Alert Level 3. Two kindergartens share their stories of transition with AKO.
Karanga Mai Early Learning Centre in Kaiapoi, north of Christchurch, is located on the grounds of Kaiapoi High School. A suspected case at the high school meant they had to go into lockdown two days before the rest of the country. Tumuaki of the centre, Jacinta McInerney, talks to Sara Shirazi about how they’re supporting the specific needs of their community.
Oral language learning in early childhood is critical to success in later life. But how well do we do it in New Zealand?
The landscape of Deaf education in New Zealand has changed a lot over the last 20 years. We look at the options now available to deaf children who are starting primary school.
School principals from around the country explain how strong communities of staff bring crucial benefits for children and whānau, from South Auckland to Southland.
The importance of whānau and community doesn’t lessen just because a child starts school, but it can be hard for educators to maintain these strong connections once a child leaves early childhood education. Jane Blaikie and Jane Arthur talk to educators across the country about the challenges they face when trying to build bridges between the child and their community.
Children do not exist in isolation; their lives are embedded in families, communities and societies. Nested within these communities are the schools and early childhood education (ECE) services children attend.
Inclusivity in ECE is increasingly seen as an opportunity to improve teaching practices and engage children’s learning.
A review of Recipes for Messy Play, from New Shoots Publishing.
Reviews of Te Whare and Ko Kiwi Mā, two books by Ngaere Roberts and Christine Dale.
Dr. Alex Gunn thinks curiously about the place and possibility of critically oriented curriculum from early childhood education me ngā Kōhanga Reo into kura and school.